Its Official

after months of waiting and begging

I'm finally getting an

iPhone

yes I'm probably like the only one around that is just now

getting around to up grading to the snazzy little thing

back in December I up graded my phone to some free phone at Verizon 

and the didn't go so well

the phone was not that great it rarely sent my text 

half the time and wouldn't even connect to the Verizon cell towers

so i really don't even know how it actually worked.

So my mom worked her magic today and was able to get Verizon 

to let me upgrade again to an iPhone 4

I'm so so so excited 

and this time Monday i will be an official iPhone user!!

Monday Rambles

{a}

My Monday started off a lot earlier than usual

I was up at 5 this morning

yep you read that correct 5 am

my missional community had our first event for Cane Bay Elementary

we hosted a teachers breakfast

it turned out really great and all the teachers were really thankful for it 

please excuse how rough i look it was early!

{b}

the best weekends are the ones that seem like their never going to end

well that's the kind of weekend I had

my mom got her last Wednesday and left Saturday

so we stayed busy from Thursday on

we tried new restaurants, watched a movie, and did a little shopping

I always love when she comes and visits!

{c}

this week brings more test and work

but on a brighter note m Civil War teacher pushed our test back

so i got to breath a sigh of relief in class today!

and were only 2 weeks away from spring break!!!!

hope every one has a great Monday!!

Lincoln, Gettysburg, & Slavery

I'm not a history buff 

I don't know what date the Civil War Started

or even when the battle of Gettysburg was!

but this semester I decided to take a Civil War and Reconstruction class

why you may ask

well I needed one more upper lever class and 
well that was all that was left for me.
I've always enjoyed history 
I mean I've take about 4 history classes in college for no good reason except
 for the fact that I loved learning about the history of the world.
There is just something so fascinating about seeing the way
 the world lived 200, 600 or even 2,000 years ago!
 There is so much we can learn from our ancestors they've seen
 so much in the short time of this world.
although I love learning about history this class has proved to be a lot harder than I expected
I've really struggled to keep up with my notes and my readings.

There are guys in my class that can literally tell you every name
of every general that fought in the war.

In class we are graded on participation and well I just lack in knowledge  
about anything Civil War related
which leaves me to where I'm at now watching a TV series called
Ken Burns: The Civil War
on a Saturday night
my teacher shows clips from this in class and I found it on Hulu 
last night and decided it would probably help me to watch these little learning episodes 
im really hoping this helps all the info stick a little better in my mind!
we have our first test this Friday 
so this week is completely dedicated to the Civil War
and I will be an almost expert by Friday!

WOW

WHAT A WEEK

my life has been absolutely crazy 

I feel like I never have time to breath or relax 

but finally after 2 weeks full of test I can finally sit for at least one night 

with out having to think about studying or anything that comes along with that.

my mom came into town on Wednesday and she has just had to sit around 

(well she didn't really sit she cleaned A LOT)

so tonight I finally got to just hang out with her 

we went to a movie theater here called Cinnabar and it was so neat

its has a full menu and you can order real food while you watch

we got chicken fingers and then some chips and salsa

its defiantly a place i will go back to because get this the tickets are cheaper 

than any of the other places around here

I've started attending a new church here in Charleston called

The Church at Cane Bay

and i absolutely love it!

they are such a Christ minded and mission focused church

that has been so welcoming and inviting to me these past couple weeks

if your in the Charleston area and want a wonderful church to go to

the you should definitely check it out!

moms here till Saturday so until then 

we will be enjoying running around town here!!

hope everyone has a wonderful Friday/weekend!

Preperations

source

I look back on my life and I see the way God has prepared me for where I am now

I see the way the trials I have faced have

shaped and molded me into the woman I am today.

I know that people say this all the time but 

I truly wouldn't change the way my life has played out for anything.

I've seen lots of hurt and lots of pain in my short 21 years

and all that has slowly lead me to my future

I'm going to be a Social Worker

I never thought I would be working in this field.

I went into college as a poultry science major, 

then I moved to nursing/ health promotions.

I always thought I would be a researcher in the science/medical field

but events over the past few years have changed me. 
When I look back I think it all started the summer of 2008 
when I took a mission trip to Brazil
the kids in those slums touched my heart and they still have a special place in it.
God has used a family that I know to show me the rewards and trials 
that come along with fostering/adopting.
and the most heart changing thing was this past semester when I studied in Chile
I volunteered at an orphanage once a week 
there were about 11 3-5 year olds.
they were so precious they wanted attention,
they craved love.
They needed someone there to show off their art work,
or pick them up when they feel down, 
and I was able for a short while be that person for them.
I needed to be there as much as they needed me
and that is when I knew
that God was calling me into Social Work 

God used my past full of brokenness
 to prepare me for the now
 so that I can live out

Isaiah 1:17 
"Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed, Defend the cause
of the orphans. Fight for the rights of widows"
and that is what I am going to spend the rest of my life fighting for

Life as of Monday

{a}

this week marks the first of man tests

from here on out I will have at least one test a week until school gets out

I don't know if I am prepared for this

but i am going to take it head on and do my best

(hopefully A's)

I am not a test lover, In fact I loath them

so this whole test every week thing is going to kill me

over the past few years I've learned how i study best 

and from that I've made tow rules for my self 

{1} study in silence 

(the car is my Favorite place to study)

{2} no studying past midnight

I've discovered if I stay up past then trying to cram and study

I do not do well at all. so now I will put everything down no matter how much

I have left to do and get a good nights rest

{b}

this past weekend my fabulous roommate hosted a womens conference at CSU

the theme was 

Charis

which means Grace in Greek

the  main speaker we had was Nicole Bromley

she has such a powerful message about finding your voice

from sexual abuse

there were two different break outs and an activity

I went to two wonderful breakouts

one was about finding Sisterhood amongst believers  

the second one was Lies Women Believer

they were both great!

I went to a couponing activity

now that was something fun I left ready to go out and be an 

extreme cuponer 

{c} 

hope everyone has a blessed week 

and has a wonderful valentines day tomorrow!

The Finished Product

like I said earlier this week I spent the weekend crafting 

it kind of ran over into the week

but I finally finished up my bed room Monday afternoon 

with the help of my wonderful friend Kelsey

so without further ado here is is!!

 

I originality wanted to do a window but I couldn't find one in my price range anywhere here 

so I decided to go for the picture frame and wreath idea

the frame was 10 dollars

and the wreath was 2.99 with coupon

both were bought at Michaels

I painted the frame first a cream color

then i lightly painted it blue 

and then completely covered it in green and sanded it down 

to make the wreath all i did was buy a few sheets of felt they were 29 cents a piece

you can find the tutorial here

there very easy and take only a few minutes to make

I saw the idea for a sign on pinterest 

so I decided to try it out

I went to home depot and found where they sell the boars that are smaller 

i think they may be scraps I don't really know

they told my i could use a hand saw to cut the wood to the size i wanted

so I tried that and well it didn't work out to well

luckily a man came by and he took it over to the electric saw and cut it for me

and was even nice enough to give it to me for free!

it was a lot longer than what I wanted but it still turned out pretty good

all i used was some of those 49 cent paints from Michaels

i watered it down and the used a paper towel to wipe away to make the "distressed" look

 this project cost me about 2 dollars to make with the paint and brushes

this was the easiest project out of them all

all i did was use two mason jars and wrap twin around the top 

and I hot glued 3 loops to make the part where it hangs from

we had the little brackets at the house and Kelsey had extra mason jars so this cost me a 

total of 2 dollars for the twine

this is the finished look above my bed 

i still want to add one more thing on the left side but

 im just not sure what to add yet

so if you have any suggestions let me know!!!

Missing Mondays

the time I spent in Chile is so special to me

I find myself missing it all the time

I miss the people I met there, I miss the atmosphere,

I miss the culture, and so much more.

In my daily life here in Charleston I am reminded of that beautiful place constantly

In class I remember how cold or hot it was depending on the weather and I remember how the teacher hated to call on my because lets face it I struggle reading in any language.

When I'm driving around town I remember how I never had to drive because we walked everywhere, I remember how much I miss the little pastry shop that was right by my apartment and the little couple that ran the little convenience store next door, and I just plain miss city life.

I miss the relationships I formed.

I meet some pretty awesome people that I wish I still saw everyday!

Its been so hard to keep in touch because of our busy lives.

I miss Mondays after a weekend of traveling 

coming back and everyone telling about the adventures that got into the past weekend

I miss Monday ice cream runs

(Tawn and i did that a lot!!)

today I'm miss all the Mondays I spent on the other side of the equator

A Crafty Time

I've been in my apartments for about a month now and I still 

have yet to finish decorating it.

So this weekend i decided to finally just tackle all the mess and

get all the stuff I wanted to decorate my room

I gave myself a budget of 40 dollars and I stayed pretty close to my budget.

After I take back all the canvases I don't need I will be about 10 dollars under.

I had 3 projects I wanted to do

make a window headboard,make a old looking sign,

and make some curtains.

So Saturday Kelsey and I set off
we started at the antique stores here in town but,

that was a big bust the antique stores here are way more expensive than I expected.

At home an old window is about 5 dollars and here they start at about 30 

so I had to re think what I wanted to do 

I remembered seeing some really cute wreaths on Pinterest 

so I decided to buy a frame and paint is and put a wreath in the middle of it.
So we headed to Michael's and got all the supplies that we needed
and headed home and started our craft night.
we had so much fun that night
after we crafted for a little bit we headed to the movies 
and saw Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close 
oh my what a phenomenal movie
my eyes didn't stay dry the second half of it
I would highly recommend it to anyone!!
I will have pictures up of everything once I get the finishing touches on everything!!
hope everyone had an amazing weekend 
and has a wonderful monday

SUYL

this is something really weird for me 

not something I would normally do but

I figured why not  just branch out and see what happens

so today I'm Linking up with Kelly and Kelly's Korner

she is hosting a little thing called Show Us Your Life today

so here is a little bit about me just for grins and giggles

So my name is Hannah Gaz

I'm 21 years old will be 22 in August

I live in Charleston SC

I am currently studying the Social Sciences at Charleston Southern University,

I will be graduating in December.

I am a Christian and I strive to live my life for Him everyday.

I love serving others and

I hope to one day be a social worker

and stand up for those who can't do that for themselves.

 I have a huge love of traveling 

I've been blessed to be able to travel the world the past few years

I am a horrible speller and I'm really bad a grammar

that's really all I can think of right now!!